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Black Agenda Radio, February 23, 2015
25 Feb 2015
šŸ–Øļø Print Article

U.S. and Europeans Seek Control of Nigeria

Boko Haram’s jihadist rebellion in northern Nigeria has caused ā€œthe fracturing of the Nigerian body politic,ā€ making the country more vulnerable to manipulation by the United States and European powers, said Eric Draitser, a political analyst and publisher of the web site StopImperialism.com. ā€œNigeria is by far the most dynamic economy in Africa.ā€ Therefore, ā€œit is a major prize for the United States and the European powers,ā€ said Draitser.

Rwandan Dictator Fears Loss of Immunity

Paul Kagame’s government allows ā€œno freedom of movement, no freedom of association,ā€ and ā€œhas massacred Rwandan Hutu refugeesā€ in Congo, said Paul Rusesabagina, the real-life hero played by actor Don Cheadle in the movie Hotel Rwanda. The movie portrayed Kagame’s forces as the good guys, but Rusesabagina, now in exile, tells a different story. Kagame is trying to remain in power past constitutional limits because he fears indictment by foreign courts as soon as he loses presidential immunity, said Rusesabagina, in an interview on the Taylor Report, CIUT Radio, Toronto, Canada.

U.S. Helped Create ISIS ā€œMonsterā€

What we see in the Middle East, today, ā€œis the product of two and a half centuries of European and American intrusionā€ into the Arab and Muslim world, said Jennifer Lowenstein, who teaches Middle East Studies at the University of Wisconsin, at Madison. ISIS is ā€œa Frankenstein’s monster that the U.S. helped create.ā€ Lowenstein, who has lived and worked for many years in the region, said the U.S. is ā€œbecoming a pariah nation, despised by almost every other country in the world.ā€

Proposed Limits on Solitary Confinement in New Jersey

Atty. Jean Ross, a member of the Newark-based People’s Organization for Progress, testified recently in favor of legislation that would bar solitary confinement for prisoners under 21, people with mental illness, and pregnant women. The bill would ā€œrequire that anyone in solitary confinement be reviewed every day by a clinician,ā€ to monitor their mental and physical condition.

The Worst ā€œCrap Holeā€ Among Pennsylvania’s Prisons

Prisoners rate Frackville State Prison as ā€œa crap holeā€ and ā€œperhaps the worstā€ facility in the state’s prison system, said inmate Bryant Arroyo, in a report to Prison Radio. Arroyo calls Frackville an ā€œanonymous fiefdomā€ where ā€œthe guards seem to find great pride, even honor, in perpetrating their anti-prisoner cultureā€ of ā€œunrestrained authority, separate from the state correctional system.ā€ Frackville is also home to Mumia Abu Jamal, the nation’s best known political prisoner.

Black Agenda Radio on the Progressive Radio Network is hosted by Glen Ford and Nellie Bailey. A new edition of the program airs every Monday at 11:00am ET on PRN. Length: One hour. Click here to download the show.

U.S. and Europeans Seek Control of Nigeria

Boko Haram’s jihadist rebellion in northern Nigeria has caused ā€œthe fracturing of the Nigerian body politic,ā€ making the country more vulnerable to manipulation by the United States and European powers, said Eric Draitser, a political analyst and publisher of the web site StopImperialism.com. ā€œNigeria is by far the most dynamic economy in Africa.ā€ Therefore, ā€œit is a major prize for the United States and the European powers,ā€ said Draitser.

Rwandan Dictator Fears Loss of Immunity

Paul Kagame’s government allows ā€œno freedom of movement, no freedom of association,ā€ and ā€œhas massacred Rwandan Hutu refugeesā€ in Congo, said Paul Rusesabagina, the real-life hero played by actor Don Cheadle in the movie Hotel Rwanda. The movie portrayed Kagame’s forces as the good guys, but Rusesabagina, now in exile, tells a different story. Kagame is trying to remain in power past constitutional limits because he fears indictment by foreign courts as soon as he loses presidential immunity, said Rusesabagina, in an interview on the Taylor Report, CIUT Radio, Toronto, Canada.

U.S. Helped Create ISIS ā€œMonsterā€

What we see in the Middle East, today, ā€œis the product of two and a half centuries of European and American intrusionā€ into the Arab and Muslim world, said Jennifer Lowenstein, who teaches Middle East Studies at the University of Wisconsin, at Madison. ISIS is ā€œa Frankenstein’s monster that the U.S. helped create.ā€ Lowenstein, who has lived and worked for many years in the region, said the U.S. is ā€œbecoming a pariah nation, despised by almost every other country in the world.ā€

Proposed Limits on Solitary Confinement in New Jersey

Atty. Jean Ross, a member of the Newark-based People’s Organization for Progress, testified recently in favor of legislation that would bar solitary confinement for prisoners under 21, people with mental illness, and pregnant women. The bill would ā€œrequire that anyone in solitary confinement be reviewed every day by a clinician,ā€ to monitor their mental and physical condition.

The Worst ā€œCrap Holeā€ Among Pennsylvania’s Prisons

Prisoners rate Frackville State Prison as ā€œa crap holeā€ and ā€œperhaps the worstā€ facility in the state’s prison system, said inmate Bryant Arroyo, in a report to Prison Radio. Arroyo calls Frackville an ā€œanonymous fiefdomā€ where ā€œthe guards seem to find great pride, even honor, in perpetrating their anti-prisoner cultureā€ of ā€œunrestrained authority, separate from the state correctional system.ā€ Frackville is also home to Mumia Abu Jamal, the nation’s best known political prisoner.

Black Agenda Radio on the Progressive Radio Network is hosted by Glen Ford and Nellie Bailey. A new edition of the program airs every Monday at 11:00am ET on PRN. Length: One hour. Click here to download the show.

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